Friday, October 30, 2015

In the near future, scientists create what may be a new form of life: an artificial human named Charlotte. All goes well until Charlotte escapes, transfers her consciousness to the Internet, and begins terrorizing the American public.Charlotte's attacks have everyone on high alert-everyone except Lee Fisher, the closeted son of the US president. Lee has other things to worry about, like keeping his Secret Service detail from finding out about his crush on Nico, the eccentric, Shakespeare-obsessed new boy at school. And keeping Nico from finding out about his recent suicide attempt. And keeping himself from freaking out about all his secrets.But when the attacks start happening at his school, Lee realizes he's Charlotte's next target. Even worse, Nico may be part of Charlotte's plan too.As Lee races to save himself, uncover Charlotte's plan, and figure out if he can trust Nico, he comes to a whole new understanding of what it means to be alive... and what makes life worth living.

**Thank you so much to SimonPulse for allowing me to read this in exchange for an honest review!**

I was extremely eager to begin reading Willful Machines, as I've been spending a lot of my time reading contemporary this year. It was therefore a very refreshing read for me! The story follows Lee, who is son of the President of the United States in the future. In this future, the world has kind of gone backwards a bit. Girls and women have lost some rights among other things. It's kind of disturbing to think about, so I hope that never happens! Anyway, Lee has a crush on a new kid named Nico, who's completely different. The two of them begin hanging out a bit, with the help of his best friend. However, he starts getting attacked at school by machines, and everyone believes that Charlotte could possibly be behind it.

I found the idea of Charlotte extremely creepy! I mean, the idea of a computerized robot going out and attacking the United States, even going as far as attacking the Statue of Liberty, is pretty darn scary. It got me thinking about if that could ever actually happen, and I honest to God hope that it can't. Lee's mom was actually killed by Charlotte when she escaped the system, because everyone was going to shut Charlotte down. In other words, Lee and his father are Charlotte's number one haters.

I loved that Lee was really into making machines. It was very steampunkish in that aspect, which I found really cool. He even had a little machine that he constantly kept in his pocket that would tug at his ear. There was a cute story behind that, but I won't give it away! It just made me want to meet Lee's mother even more.

The relationship between Lee and Nico was awesome. This was actually my first book featuring a gay protagonist, and I loved every minute of it. The two of them were extremely cute and I loved watching the two of them gain a stronger relationship throughout the book. If you're in the mood for a very unique science fiction read, I highly suggest checking out Willful Machines.

Artist Beatrix Adams knows exactly how she's spending the summer before her senior year. Determined to follow in Leonardo da Vinci’s footsteps, she's ready to tackle the one thing that will give her an advantage in a museum-sponsored scholarship contest: drawing actual cadavers. But when she tries to sneak her way into the hospital’s Willed Body program and misses the last metro train home, she meets a boy who turns her summer plans upside down.Jack is charming, wildly attractive . . . and possibly one of San Francisco’s most notorious graffiti artists. On midnight buses and city rooftops, Beatrix begins to see who Jack really is—and tries to uncover what he’s hiding that leaves him so wounded. But will these secrets come back to haunt him? Or will the skeletons in Beatrix’s own family’s closet tear them apart?

The Anatomical Shape of A Heart is yet another amazing contemporary 2015 release! The story follows Bex who wants to try to find cadavers to use in order to get a leg-up in the scholarship competition that she's hoping to win. If she wants to go to college, she needs the money, and this is the perfect opportunity. However, her mom is completely against her using real cadavers because she's so young. After missing a professor that she's was planning on talking to about the cadaver situation, Bex has to take the light-night train home. On the train, she ends up meeting Jack, who she falls in love with eventually. Turns out, he may have a huge secret regarding the graffiti that keeps showing up around town.

I absolutely adored the relationship between Bex and Jack! The two of them were super cute and in love, which I completely ate up. Bex was a very relatable character for me, as she was hoping to win scholarships for college. I'm a senior this year in high school, and I know the struggle of trying to win scholarships. I've been writing essays nonstop in hopes to win some money to put towards tuition! I felt very bad for her because of her father's disappearance in her life, though. Plus, her mom didn't seem to be home much. However, when she was home, I got a great feeling about her. She's very caring and is absolutely hilarious when it comes to her children's relationships!

Jack was definitely my favorite character because I always end up adoring the love interest in contemporaries. He was completely awesome and I loved learning more about his family. I wish that he was a little more open at first with Bex, though I can understand why he kept some things from her. He went through some things that caused him to be that way. Jack was so sweet and loyal to Bex though, so he was very respectable. It was so cute when they were together!

I'd definitely recommend giving this book a read, because it's one that you won't want to miss. Incredibly original and doubly romantic, The Anatomical Shape of a Heart is a quirky love story that's perfect for almost any reader.

Nina Dobrev as Bex

I don't know why, but I feel like Nina would be awesome as Bex. She looks just like I pictured Bex looking as well. Plus, Nina is an excellent actress.

Matt Lanter as Jack

I feel like Matt would be perfect as Jack!

Chloe Grace Moretz as Jillian

Chloe is awesome in deep roles, so she'd definitely be able to embody Jillian.

Jenn Bennett is an artist and RITA-nominated author of the Arcadia Bell urban fantasy series (Kindling the Moon) and the Roaring Twenties romance series, including Bitter Spirits, which was chosen as one of Publishers Weekly Best Books of 2014 and winner of RT Book Reviews Paranormal Romance Book of the Year, and Grave Phantoms—which was awarded RT's May Seal of Excellence for 2015. The Anatomical Shape of a Heart, (akaNight Owls in the U.K.) is her first YA contemporary romance. She lives near Atlanta with one husband and two evil pugs. Visit her at www.jennbennett.net.

Wednesday, October 28, 2015

Sadie Kingston, is a girl living in the aftermath. A year after surviving a car accident that killed her friend Trent and left her body and face scarred, she can't move forward. The only person who seems to understand her is Trent's brother, Max.
As Sadie begins to fall for Max, she's unsure if she is truly healed enough to be with him-even if Max is able to look at her scars and not shy away. But when the truth about the accident and subsequent events come to light, Sadie has to decide if she can embrace the future or if she'll always be trapped in the past.

Sophia Marcus, 21, has
already mapped out every aspect of her glamorous life as a Hollywood
actor on her vision board. But her life right now in Toronto is anything
but exciting. Attending fruitless auditions during the day and working
at a douche-y club at night, Sophia is starting to feel like she's going
nowhere...slowly.Demi Michaels, Sophia's best friend, didn't go
to college after high school. Short of ideas for her own future, she
puts her energy into building the perfect relationship with an older
man. And when that relationship crashes and burns, Demi is left to pick
up the pieces.Sophia's friend (and Demi's frenemy) Leandra
Hunting doesn't give a crap about hard work or a loving relationship.
She has other plans for her future. After college graduation, Leandra
sets out to travel the world in the yachts, planes and limos of
ridiculously wealthy men. Will any of them be able to show her what love
really means--if she can take off her Chanel sunglasses long enough to
see it?Set in the exotic, intoxicating worlds of Hollywood, Thailand, and London, Bliss paints
a relatable portrait of life in your early twenties with equal parts
optimism and fear, hope and disappointment, expectation and reality.
It's the Age of Uncertainty when you can count on nothing, but, if
you're lucky enough to have one truly great friend, you can survive just
about anything.

**Thank you so much to St. Martin's Press for allowing me to read and review Bliss!**

I've been a huge fan of Pretty Little Liars ever since middle school when I found Sara Shepard's books. That's why as soon as I saw that Shay Mitchell was writing a book, I immediately knew that I had to read it. I have to say, I was not disappointed.

Bliss follows three friends: Demi, Sophia, and Leandra. When we first meet Demi, she finds that her boyfriend is a cheater who's been messing around on her, even though she loved him so deeply. Now she just wants to find her dream job and be in bliss one day since she never went to college. Sophia wants to be an actress and she's worked so hard trying to become one. The third friend, Leandra, is out traveling through most of the book. She and Demi aren't on the best of terms.

Out of all the characters, Sophia was my favorite because I loved her story. She wanted to be an actress and worked her butt off for that to happen, no matter what people said to her. I really liked her and respected her for that. Leandra was definitely a different kind of character. I loved that she was traveling a lot because I really want to travel the world a bit. I guess I was living vicariously through her in that sense. She definitely likes having a boyfriend though! Bliss was a quick read for me because I loved the characters so much and I felt like I began to know them all so well. I never once got bored with their stories and I always remembered which story matched with which girl, so I was never confused either.

This book was a great tale of friendship and the twists and turns that life throws at you. I loved reading about all the different characters; I'm a sucker for dual point of views. Plus, I've never read a book that was mainly set in Canada, so that was something new for me. I'm definitely excited to read more by Shay and Michaela in the future.

Wednesday, October 21, 2015

Going Bovine meets Trainspotting in this gritty portrait of at-risk teens gaming the prescription drug trial system.
Meet Audie: Professional lab rat. Guinea pig. Serial human test subject. For Audie and her friends, "volunteering" for pharmaceutical drug trails means a quick fix and easy cash.
Sure, there's the occasional nasty side effect, but Audie's got things under control. If Monday's pill causes a rash, Tuesday's ointment usually clears it right up. Wednesday's injection soothes the sting from Tuesday's "cure," and Thursday's procedure makes her forget all about Wednesday's headache. By the time Friday rolls around, there's plenty of cash in hand and perhaps even a slot in a government-funded psilocybin study, because WEEKEND!
But the best fix of all is her boyfriend, Dylan, whose terminal illness just makes them even more compatible. He's turning eighteen soon, so Audie is saving up to make it an unforgettable birthday. That means more drug trials than ever before, but Dylan is worth it.
No pain, no gain, Audie tells herself as the pills wear away at her body and mind. No pain, no gain, she repeats as her grip on reality starts to slide...
Raw and irreverent, Placebo Junkies will captivate readers until the very end, when author J.C. Carleson leans in for a final twist of fate.

Placebo Junkies will be released on October 27 by Knopf Books for Young Readers.

The author of A Little Something Different brings you the most adorkable romance ever.Jane,
a superstitious fangirl, takes an anonymous babysitting job to avoid an
unpaid internship with her college-obsessed mom. The only problem?
She’s babysitting the siblings of her childhood friend and new crush,
Teo.Teo doesn’t dislike Jane, but his best friend Ravi hates
her, and is determined to keep them apart. So Teo’s pretty sure his
plans for a peaceful summer are shot. His only hope is that his
intermittent search for his birth father will finally pan out and he’ll
find a new, less awkward home. Meanwhile, at Jane’s house, her sister
Margo wants to come out as bisexual, but she’s terrified of how her
parents will react.In a summer filled with secrets and questions, even Jane’s Magic 8 ball can’t give them clear answers, but Signs Point to Yes.

Lately, I've been a huge fan of contemporaries. It's odd, because if you asked me about a year ago, I would have said I wasn't the biggest fan. However, this year, I've been loving them! Therefore, Signs Point to Yes was no exception.

Signs Point to Yes is about a girl named Jane who gets a job babysitting a boy named Teo's younger sisters for the summer. The two of them end up having a bit of a romance, which I'm sure you could tell from the title. They end up spending quite a bit of time together that summer.

Jane was a very sweet character. I felt bad for her because her parents had such high standards for her just because of her older sister, Margo. Margo had done so well in school and went on to a good college, and they want the same for Jane, though Jane isn't sure she wants that. Jane doesn't want to spend tons of money on education when she doesn't even know what she wants to do with her life. The only reason she got the babysitting job in the first place was even because she went behind her mother's back after her mom had gotten her an internship and she instead went and got herself the babysitting job. I'd hate having such high standards and feeling like I was never enough.

I absolutely loved Teo. He was a very fun character and he was just so sweet! However, I hated his friend, Ravi. By the end, he had definitely grown on me though. I also felt bad for Teo at times, mainly because of his father. He never met his father, and just desperately wanted to meet him one day. Plus, his step dad, Buck, was only about fifteen years older than him, so they had a weird relationship since they were so close in age.

In the end, this book is definitely one that I'd recommend. It was silly and sweet all at the same time, and I couldn't stop rooting for the relationship. Plus, it was written in different point of views, which was amazing.